“CHECK THIS OUT.” Mark gestured me to come take a look through the microscope. “This is not gold.”

“It can’t be gold,” I retorted. “Gold is an earth mineral. This isn’t from earth.”

Mark’s mouth thinned. “I understand that. Just take a look, please?”

I frowned. If Mark couldn’t tell what it was, I wasn’t likely to know, either. Mark was the best in the field, for God’s sake. His ability to identify meteor mineral compositions was what got him placed on the team in the first place. I pushed him aside and studied the mineral. “Looks like gold to me… wait… holy crap, what’s that? What is that?” I jumped back. “Is it…?”